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747 SuperTanker receives CAL FIRE contract

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags 9 Comments on 747 SuperTanker receives CAL FIRE contract

Above: Air Tanker 944, the 747 SuperTanker, at Colorado Springs, May 4, 2016. Photo by Bill Gabbert.

Originally published on Fire Aviation at 2:23 p.m. MDT August 28, 2017.

Jim Wheeler President and CEO of Global SuperTanker said today their 747 SuperTanker has received a call when needed (CWN) contract with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). The aircraft and crew were also issued cards by CAL FIRE, meaning they passed the inspections and meet the qualifications. The U.S. Forest Service participated in the process but they do not issue cards until a USFS contract is in place.

Mr. Wheeler said the air tanker is presently at McClellan Air Field and is available.

The first time the 747 was used on a U.S. fire was on the Railbelt Complex of Fires in Alaska August 1, 2009. About a month later it assisted firefighters on the Station Fire near Los Angeles.

Filson honors aerial firefighters

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags 2 Comments on Filson honors aerial firefighters

Filson produced this video to honor smokejumpers and rappellers of the U.S. Forest Service.

This is how Filson describes the video:

For 112 years, the United States Forest Service has been caretaker of America’s most cherished natural resources: our public lands. Through their tireless efforts, 193 million acres of grasslands and national forests are ours to explore and cultivate-now and for generations to come.

Update on Chetco Bar Fire and other wildfires in the Northwest

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , , , , 10 Comments on Update on Chetco Bar Fire and other wildfires in the Northwest

Above: Satellite photo from August 27, 2017 showing smoke created by fires in the Northwestern United States, including Chetco Bar, Liberty, Rice Ridge, and Jolly Mountain Fires. The red dots on the map represent heat detected by the satellite on August 28.

(Originally published at 9:55 a.m. MDT August 28, 2017)

The Chetco Bar Fire in Southwest Oregon has not been growing as quickly in recent days as it did earlier when it quadrupled in size over four days and crossed the 100,000-acre threshold. The most recent mapping puts it at almost 108,000 acres. The area is under a Red Flag Warning on through Tuesday for gusty southwest winds and low humidities which could result in increased burning intensity and rapid fire growth.

The 4,400-acre Jolly Mountain Fire in Central Washington is near a Red Flag Warning area. Fire officials’ expectations for Monday:

Southern and western flanks of the fire will become active with uphill crown runs both on the east and west sides of West Fork drainage. SE flank will continue to back downslope. Fire will become increasingly active as it spreads to the south, where it loses its downslope effect and in more exposed to general winds. Fire likely to cross Sasse Ridge to the west.

liberty fire dozer
A dozer passes through an area where firefighters are working on the Liberty Fire. Undated & uncredited Inciweb photo.

The 12,800-acre Liberty Fire has been burning northeast of Missoula, Montana since July 15 while the Rice Ridge Fire, not far away, has spread over 27,800 acres since it started two weeks later. Hot, dry weather on Monday could cause both blazes to become more active.

Wildfires in Southeastern Europe

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 4 Comments on Wildfires in Southeastern Europe

There are many wildfires burning in Southeastern Europe in the countries of Albania, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. We were unable to find much information about them on English language web sites.

The red dots in the photo represent heat detected by the satellite.

wildfires albania map
Smoke can be seen from wildfires in Southeastern Europe in this satellite photo from August 28, 2017. The red dots represent heat detected by the satellite.

Hawk and snake combination start wildfire in Montana

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , 2 Comments on Hawk and snake combination start wildfire in Montana

Firefighters with the Black Eagle Fire Department working on a fire that burned 40 acres in northern Montana didn’t know what started the fire until Kyra Vanisko discovered a dead hawk at the point of origin. Still in the bird’s talons was a snake, also very dead. The carcases were below a poweline, so the working theory is that the hawk, carrying the snake, intended to land on the line but on final approach the snake dangling below contacted one line while the hawk touched another. The completed circuit electrocuted both animals.

Hawk snake start fire
A hawk carrying a snake started a fire in northern Montana last week. Photo by firefighter Kyra Vanisko of the Black Eagle Fire Department. Used with permission.
fire start hawk snake
A hawk carrying a snake started a fire in northern Montana last week. Photo by firefighter Kyra Vanisko of the Black Eagle Fire Department. Used with permission.

It is not the first time a bird has started a fire. Other stories on Wildfire Today about animal arson.

Waffle House responds to disaster areas with Incident Management Teams

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags

Waffle House “Jump Teams” help keep their restaurants open during local emergencies.

I learned in 1992 during our Incident Management Team’s response to South Florida after Hurricane Andrew that the local National Park Service personnel who would normally be rescuers, had become victims and needed the assistance from outside the area.

Waffle House calls them “Jump Teams” but when an area is hit by a hurricane or other disaster they respond from outside the region to keep their local restaurants up and running as much as possible. The concept is not unlike land management agencies sending teams and crews across the country to help the locals deal with a wildfire or other emergency.

Waffle House is known in hurricane-prone areas for being among the last to close and the first to open in area where residents are forced to evacuate. New employees receive training about how to manage the restaurants during difficult circumstances.

Below are excerpts from a Yahoo article published August 25 as the effects of Hurricane Harvey were unfolding on the Texas coast:

A Waffle House jump team consists of a small team of restaurant operators from outside the hurricane zone. These employees swoop in at the first possible moment after a storm to restore service and get things open. Typically after a storm, demand for food is high and functioning restaurants are in low supply, and things get extremely busy.

“There’s a jump team outside of Nashville ready to go on Sunday. Jump teams are [also] ready in Louisiana,” said Warner. “Then we can deploy from the main office some teams that may or may not go depending on severity.”

One of the reasons why these jump teams are the key to the chain’s success is because employees may not be able to work if they’re dealing with their own hurricane damage.

“It does help to bring operators from outside so it relieves [local employees] so they can focus on family,,” said Warner. “They don’t have to worry about their restaurant at the same time.”